beaupower32
Tech Sergeant
Dont know if this goes here, and even if I worded the heading right. But I found this. Dont know if this has been posted yet, but I sure hope this doesnt happen.
Long Island's aviation heritage is well-known. Charles Lindbergh, Grumman and Republic Aviation immediately come to mind. Just think where the world's aviation accomplishments would be without them, and the men and women who flew the planes.
But when there is time to remember them, somehow that is not appreciated. Such is the frustrating case with the effort to save the American Airpower Museum in Farmingdale. The Federal Aviation Administration wants to extend the runway and aprons of Republic Airport, and the museum is right in their way. So what do they do? The FAA wants to demolish the vintage hangar which houses the museum and its collection of aircraft to make room for the runway apron and allocated $10.6 million to do the job.
However, there is no thought for the museum. The FAA effectively kicked the museum to the curb with nary a mention of where the museum should go, and what Long Islanders should do to keep hold of our contribution to aviation. Adding insult to injury, the FAA has $2 million allocated to demolish the museum, but hasn't allocated anything to relocate or reconstruct a new museum. It's ironic that government is often adept at demolishing buildings and laws, but is often challenged to building anew.
If you have never visited the museum or been outside the hangar when World War II-era planes are taking off, circling the airport, doing touch-and-gos and landing again, you just can't have a sense of why this museum must endure. The men and women who flew these planes and those who now take such tender care to preserve them are one reason. The exhibits about the flights, the history of the planes, the battles they were in preserve a story that is slowly vanishing with each passing day as those who flew them pass away.
Rep. Steve Israel and Sen. Charles Schumer understand that and want to allocate part of that $10.6 million to save the museum. Certainly the museum has economic value, but this struggle is not about money; it is about memories.
Long Island's aviation heritage is well-known. Charles Lindbergh, Grumman and Republic Aviation immediately come to mind. Just think where the world's aviation accomplishments would be without them, and the men and women who flew the planes.
But when there is time to remember them, somehow that is not appreciated. Such is the frustrating case with the effort to save the American Airpower Museum in Farmingdale. The Federal Aviation Administration wants to extend the runway and aprons of Republic Airport, and the museum is right in their way. So what do they do? The FAA wants to demolish the vintage hangar which houses the museum and its collection of aircraft to make room for the runway apron and allocated $10.6 million to do the job.
However, there is no thought for the museum. The FAA effectively kicked the museum to the curb with nary a mention of where the museum should go, and what Long Islanders should do to keep hold of our contribution to aviation. Adding insult to injury, the FAA has $2 million allocated to demolish the museum, but hasn't allocated anything to relocate or reconstruct a new museum. It's ironic that government is often adept at demolishing buildings and laws, but is often challenged to building anew.
If you have never visited the museum or been outside the hangar when World War II-era planes are taking off, circling the airport, doing touch-and-gos and landing again, you just can't have a sense of why this museum must endure. The men and women who flew these planes and those who now take such tender care to preserve them are one reason. The exhibits about the flights, the history of the planes, the battles they were in preserve a story that is slowly vanishing with each passing day as those who flew them pass away.
Rep. Steve Israel and Sen. Charles Schumer understand that and want to allocate part of that $10.6 million to save the museum. Certainly the museum has economic value, but this struggle is not about money; it is about memories.
Good one!
